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Confucius’ teachings is the begin of chinese culture . The teachings include nearly all important aspect of the relationship between emperor and people etc. Most of sentences in the Analects of Confucius are short but have profound and deep meaning. So for thousands years the teachings were taken as the questions in exam for choosing officers. It is indeed the examination can choose the right one who can expond the complex relationship in China. Many idioms in Confucius’ teachings are still used abroadly. Many of the paintings are about the story in the Analects of Confucius . “Harmony is priceless” is one of the confucius’ teachings, now that goverment wants to build harmonious society, it is very important to respect confucius’ teachings even after several years’ violent criticism in 1970s.

Confucius taught during a period of great uncertainty in China. The Zhou dynasty had come under attack and while it was preserved, it was only in smaller and more limited form.

The few centuries between the 7th-century BCE and the 3rd century BCE saw many philosophies flourish, three of which I’ll mention here: Daoism, Confucianism and Legalism.

Confucius taught that there is a natural moral order, or hierarchy in society. Younger should respect elder, wife to husband, younger brother to older brother, etc. All of this should proceed naturally. Moreover, people should do things because it is good in and of itself to do things, not because of some greater reward–this is altruism, and it’s one of the basic tenets of Confucian philosophy. So filial piety and altruism were crucial. This will play out significantly after the 3rd century BCE

Legalist scholars were students of Confucianism who turned away from it. Legalists believe that people do things only because they have to, not because they want to. They only know reward and punishment. People are inveterately bad. This is much different from Confucius’ teacings. Anyway, the “first emperor” of a unified China, Qin Shihuangdi, was a follower of legalism and his reign was incredibly brutal. When he finally died (an interesting story in and of itself if you have the inclination to read about it or watch television shows about it), the empire was thrown into chaos, but very soon thereafter the Han dynasty was founded. The founder of the Han dynasty was interested in Daoism, but he was convinced by the scholars that he should actually enforce Confucianism because it would protect the idea of hierarchy in society (and also preserve the jobs of the scholars, known as shi, who had it really bad during Shihuangdi’s time).

so, his teachings are important because from the Han dynasty forward (201 BCE – c. 1911 CE) Confucian philosophy was the predominant political and social philosophy guiding Chinese life.